Our “Urban AquaFarma” project is about creating a green-garden mobile installation for the local food production which is based on an aquaponic system, but supported by rain and stormwater collection infrastructure. Alongside food production, the infrastructure plays an educational and social role, integrating the citizens, creating the workplace, but predominantly it propagates the environmentally-friendly behaviours for all age groups.
Cross-border/international
Poland
Other
Norway
{Empty}
{Empty}
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
Yes
Program/nr konkursu: Program „Badania stosowane” / The IdeaLab Call for Full Proposals
Ścieżka / obszar: Cities for the future: services and solutions NOR/IdeaLab/USAGE/0004/2020
No
Yes
As a representative of an organization, in partnership with other organisations
Name of the organisation(s): Water Science and Technology Institute - H2O SciTech Type of organisation: Non-profit organisation First name of representative: Katarzyna Last name of representative: Pala Gender: Female Nationality: Poland Function: President of the Board Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Ul. Szewczenki 24 Town: Wroclaw Postal code: 51-351 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 609 190 857 E-mail:katarzyna.pala@h2o-scitech.eu Website:https://h2o-scitech.eu/
Name of the organisation(s): Warsaw University of Technology Type of organisation: University or another research institution First name of representative: Paweł Last name of representative: Pedrycz Gender: Male Nationality: Poland Function: Scientists Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Plac Politechniki 1 Town: Warszawa Postal code: 00-661 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 600 971 283 E-mail:Pawel.Pedrycz@pw.edu.pl Website:https://www.pw.edu.pl/
Name of the organisation(s): Politechnika Krakowska Type of organisation: University or another research institution First name of representative: Joanna Last name of representative: Bąk Gender: Female Nationality: Poland Function: Scientists Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: ul. Warszawska 24 Town: Kraków Postal code: 31-155 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 507 280 899 E-mail:joanna.bak@pk.edu.pl Website:https://www.pk.edu.pl/index.php/pl/
Name of the organisation(s): CASE - Center for Social and Economic Research Type of organisation: Non-profit organisation First name of representative: Karolina Last name of representative: Zubel Gender: Female Nationality: Poland Function: Researcher Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: al. Aleja Jana Pawła II 61 Town: Warszawa Postal code: 01-031 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 609 814 036 E-mail:karolina.zubel@case-research.eu Website:https://www.case-research.eu/pl
AquaFarm in our modern city may help to fulfill our anthropologic need for contact with nature and their life cycles. Experience of the aquaponic garden, with its real processes of chemical cycling and metabolism, is in this sense more profound than a typical park. Even more important advantage to urban hierarchies is its potential for social interactions. In the dawn of reduction era and search for climate deficit the aquafarm may become a model functional hybrid, combining the role of a workplace, area of meetings and social interactions. Today, when the formula of mono-functional zones and long urban transit routes, rooted in the modernist concept has been gradually fading, the aquafarm has a chance to become a perfect local antidote which accumulates and generates activities within a neighbourhood. Alternative, modern meeting place, based on local bonds and relations. The aquaponic farm creates a hybrid space for intergenerational education, know-how exchange and recreation. Citizens' commitment and improvement of social bonds arising from local duties and needs, supported by the model of a new economy in micro-scale, allow to reconstruct relations, so severely neglected during the last decades. Production of healthy and high-quality food is based on local, ecological supply chains, reaching its end in nearby restaurants and homes, providing jobs. The aquafarm offers an additional kind of reward and target: healthy food, pesticide- and chemistry-free, generating low carbon footprint and significantly lower use of water. And last but not least: zero waste containers, zero transport, zero waste. Moreover, aquaponic farms integrated with rainwater collection systems can play a crucial role in city water management and education, which is so important in the era of climate changes. This concept diminishes social inequalities by giving equal access to goods produced locally, at the same time creates the potential of countless interactions and social integration
MOBILE AQUAPONIC INSTALLATIONS
INCLUSIVE SPACES
AGRIHOOD
FOOD ENERGY WATER NEXUS
WATER-SMART CIRCULAR ECONOMY
One of the project's main goals in terms of sustainability is to implement a water-smart circular economy in food production in the cities of the future. Hence, the implementation of the SDG goals (i.a. SDG 2, 4, 11 and 12) is part of this initiative.
Our mobile aquaponic farm - “Urban AquaFarma” built from recycled sea containers in Wroclaw, Poland, is a place for breeding and growing animals and plants in a closed aquaponic system, with a planned green roof and a system for collecting and treating rain and stormwater, supplementing water losses. The design of heating, cooling, air conditioning and ventilation assumes the use of renewable energy sources - heat pumps, photovoltaic panels, a solar roof. The mobile installation is a ready-made system to be used by city dwellers, i.e. when introduced by construction developers or by those responsible for urban regeneration and neighbourhood refurbishments. Furthermore, our project ensures a holistic approach to water, energy and food nexus, a synergy of three resources necessary to ensure human security. Apart from the already mentioned green energy, this security is provided by water savings (we use up to 90% less in hydroponic and aquaponic systems than in case of traditional agriculture), healthy food produced in cities and their outskirts in closed, pesticide-free conditions, without the need to use chemical protection agents plants. The added value is the maximum shortening of the supply chain (hence the much lower CO2 emissions from transport).
An opportunity to build relationships around a well-designed and inclusive food production farm which creates a safe place for everyone was our goal from the very beginning. That is precisely why our beautiful and relaxing space that connects neighbours and visitors of Hydropolis science centre in Wroclaw where the AquaFarma is located, has been co-created with local dwellers. Participants of design-thinking-oriented workshops and citizens who have been interviewed additionally at different stages of the farm development, expressed their opinions, needs and preferences regarding the aesthetics that we - the project team - considered while building the installation. In the design phase, we were also in regular contact with local, regional and national authorities, as well as EU staff to ensure that our end-product fits well into the policy agenda. Thus, our activities have local, regional, but also national and European scope, and can be scaled and replicated in other cities and regions across the EU. Since our project results are not based only on research, but also tests, experiences and analyses that have been co-developed with citizens, we believe that it helped us gain positive feedback from them, to ensure positive emotions on their end. Activities that we propose do not require outsourcing concrete actions to external specialists, simply because they can be developed by local communities with different competences and similar interests. We believe that agrihoods ensure a “return to nature” in long-term thinking about food security, energy independence from external supplies, , and provide new solutions for obtaining, purifying and reusing water guaranteeing the stability of the industrial ecosystem.
On a practical level, our AquaFarma is open for all, free of charge. We are doing our best to make it accessible also for the disabled groups. As for the scientific level, the research pursued for the purpose of our project, proved urban agriculture to be a source to create economic inclusion while preserving culture to reduce poverty. By generating economic inclusion, urban agriculture can provide an entry point into society for vulnerable communities. Economic activity is closely linked to the traditions and customs of the community stakeholders in reference. In this sense, when urban agriculture activity is sustainable in the medium and long term, it can provide economic inclusion and preserve culture as well. A standard expectation of societal integration often involves relinquishing cultural elements that are rooted in seniors’ (I different part of the world also indigenous) knowledge to assimilate into the hegemonic norms of the region. By way of food production, preservation of those seniors’ (indigenous) onto-epistemological paradigms can be accomplished, while also providing access to new economic opportunities. Additionally, categorised as educational, social, community and therapeutic gardens, according to the included vulnerable groups (especially children in the co-creation process), the “AquaFarma” catalogue of good practices presents a collection of successful ideas ensuring inclusivity for all when it comes to urban agriculture. Moreover, it highlights the importance and role of public institutions in raising socio-economic inclusion of vulnerable / marginalised groups through participatory methodology which in our opinion shall become a new normal when it comes to “urban governance”.
Water, energy, food, mobile installations with social purpose, urban regeneration, and local citizens are the main “objects” of our initiative focused on education and raising awareness. The starting point for all our activities is the transformation of the protected, currently being reinvigorated area, close to the city centre of Wroclaw. A place combining historic, restored buildings for water supply, in proximity to the river and natural green areas and ecosystems, inaccessible to the community until recently. Thanks to the system’s construction, lightweight installation of the aquaponic farm, this place is slowly becoming a space for communicating the objectives of the European Green Deal, with particular emphasis on promoting healthy and affordable food, clean water and energy for all citizens. AquaFarma is also a place connecting local communities, giving them an opportunity to build interpersonal relationships, exchange with regards to new climate-friendly technologies that they co-created with the project team (educational and social benefits). Importantly, AquaFarma does not only introduce a new way of healthy and sustainable food production (ecological and health benefits), but it also opens new economic opportunities. Firstly, it becomes a place where at least a few people will find part-time employment. Secondly, it increases the value of residential buildings in the neighbourhood. Thirdly, it allows local citizens to benefit from increased tourism that the farm will bring.
Building a community is the primary aim of our consortium. Our urban agricultural project is carried out in a historic area, located close to the centre of Wroclaw, hence numerous consultations with city officials were undertaken to ensure the most effective regeneration of this area. Through participatory methodology involving various stakeholders, families with children were identified as a group mostly interested in this area’s development. To support this community, the participants decided to establish a number of co-creation workshops to help them feel “heard”. Besides involving the target group in the process, significant partnerships were developed with local NGOs, kindergartens and schools (including university), which are situated next to the site of the urban farm. For an urban agricultural site, such as AquaFarma, to be sustainable, it is important to ensure long-term use of the plot and funding by the business representatives, municipality, or international institutions. Hence, the gradually improved communication and growing understanding between the citizens, business representatives and the city authorities is being considered as one of the main achievements of the participatory methodology developed by the project. As the project envisioned numerous innovations from the very beginning (storm and rainwater usage for food production purposes) that were not entirely defined by the Polish nor EU law, national and EU officials were contacted regularly to ensure that all actions are in accordance with the law, and, at the same time, fit well into the policy agenda.
The project team represents various disciplines and consists of urban designers, architects, artists, economists, specialists in the field of water supply, and water and wastewater technology, biotechnologists, biologists and chemists, as well as sociologists, lawyers and communication experts. A majority of team members also have extensive experience in the field of education. Members of the consortium have been cooperating on the project and its implementation in the urban fabric from the beginning and regularly met at least on a weekly basis (teleconferences or face to face meetings). Decisions are made jointly, and before each of them is made, different points of view are considered given a variety of disciplines covered by the representatives of the project. For example, the aesthetic architectural vision is “corrected” in real time by technical and technological proofing stemming from the aquaponic or the water purification system knowledge of water specialists. In addition, the implementation of solutions is also carried out in cooperation with the local community (predominantly families with children) in the form of workshops. The green roof is created in cooperation with an environmental engineer, constructor and architect. The added value of this approach to the project is all about more effective work and facilitation of the development process. Most industry reconciliations are made at the same time, and the time saved can be spent on other important activities.
The USAGE concept is innovative on three levels: technological, economic and societal. Despite the existence of the aquaponic installation across the world, there are no systems connected with the stormwater utilisation for the production of the food in the cities.
The existing installations have rather a minor role in food production and environmental protection and focus more on education and hobby. The USAGE project's main objective is to create a system which is scalable and useful in solving problems of healthy food and water management in the future cities, which serves as an educational facility. When we look at this project, we can describe the current scientific state of art first, in the context of technology or second, as a socio-technological concept of urban farms with high-value food, sociological and educational role and sustainable base of city development. Aquaponics and land-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) is still considered as new technology, and in its infancy. Urban stormwater is a major challenge in most cities. Nature-based systems such as rain gardens, green roofs or other bioretention solutions are pointed out as a far better and sustainable approach to tackle urban stormwater in future cities. The USAGE project intent is to build the installation and educate citizens and decision-makers about the main advantages of such systems for the future cities and in terms of climate changes. USAGE is engaging specialists from urban planning and social and economical research. We use the Urban Living Lab (ULL) methodology to do societal research and build a bond with society. The basic indicators are being gathered in order to show the economic justification for the SMEs. Up to date, there is a biassed opinion that only large-scale farms are economically feasible. USAGE will bring the first data regarding small aquaponics farms.
The USAGE project creates social-technological impact that could be transferred from Wroclaw (and Oslo where the sister installation is being built) as:
1. Our social and economic analysis shows that opportunities of agrihood concept using aquaponic systems integrated with rain and stormwater in high-quality food production can bring durable benefits in urban spaces;;
2. We can provide regulatory guidelines for local authorities and future entrepreneurs on urban farming development;
3. We analysed the rain and stormwater conditions in the chosen cities and assessed the possibility to use it in aquaponic systems (publication);
4. We can provide design and operational manual of two aquaponic installations integrated with the storm and rainwater collection system (open knowledge);
5. We can provide education plans for schools introducing the agrihood concept.
Overall, these insights introduce new methods of food production in the city, while presenting the variety of the water management solutions and the role of the local community engagement - which are relevant in all EU cities and regions. What is more, we believe that the project results will foster innovative entrepreneurship in the area of food production.
The project takes the Urban Living Lab (ULL) approach and has a structure consisting of six
interrelated and feedback-driven work packages (WPs). Its concept assumes a synergic combination of various research topics rising around the urban stormwater aquaponic environment. As a way of interaction with society, multiple methods are employed, including educational workshops that ensure creative engagement. Workshops are conducted throughout most WP and vary in scale:
A. small scale (~20 person) - drawing and writing
B. medium scale (~30) - creating models in scale
C. large scale - building the actual environment and its’ 1:1 prototypes and subject:
1. Object - “how the infrastructure may work and look like”
2. Architectural - “how the infrastructure may interact with its direct surroundings -
school building and facilities”
3. Urban - “how the aquaponic infrastructure may organise the lifestyle of the whole
neighbourhood”.
Our ULL methodology assumed moving almost all research activities to the project site. Big part of the infrastructure is located in two urban sites (Wroclaw and a sister project in Oslo) and research on them is being performed there. In this “co-creation” process subject infrastructure is developed in front of the local community and with their engagement. Researchers in this setting can be seen as “invited experts” that intervene within stormwater aquaponic installation but are doing this “on behalf” of the society. Aquaponic farms in modern, dense cities may help accomplish the search for amorphous forms, offering expected variety and contrast in highly urbanised contexts.
We believe that our project gives solutions to numerous global challenges including:
- the need to raise awareness about healthy food production and supply chain - within the project, we promote the local food production under the control of the local community; showing the process of pollution-free food production. Thanks to the installation of the aquaponic system we will increase knowledge about the food origin, and its carbon footprint as well as health aspects stemming from the food quality;
- water scarcity problems and presentation of ideas on how to overcome them - currently, urban authorities lack knowledge about some problems leading to water scarcity. Through the use of a storm/rainwater collection and treatment system, we will present solutions to overcome this challenge. AquaFarma also implements circular water management so much needed in cities arund the world;
- the need to promote entrepreneurship - our model includes the plan for scaling up the system. We plan to create a business model and the step by step manual showing how to start the
business connected with the food production in aquaponic systems. We predict an impact
on entrepreneurship on the production side but also in selling and processing the food (new
restaurants, food supply companies, food processing spin-offs);
- improvement of the quality of life in Wroclaw and beyond - investment such as aquaponics will improve the quality of life of the local community twofold: green areas influence the mental health of the citizens and good quality food,
full of nutrients with no pollutants and pesticides will have an impact on physical health.
Till now, numerous workshops and interviews have been conducted for the local community of Wroclaw to ensure the co-design process. In addition, the initiative and related issues are presented at numerous international conferences. The aim of the above-mentioned activities is to develop such competences in various social/age groups as e.g. adaptability, futures literacy and exploratory thinking. Additionally, in the near future four types of education actions are planned:
"Bauhaus Garage" - a series of meetings between residents and experts (local architects and urbanists, city officials) to exchange ideas and proposals aimed at a better life in the city. The continuation of these meetings will be an online social platform dedicated to the cities of the future;
"Urban gardens" - an educational programme addressed to seniors and children of primary schools. Its aim is to teach adults traditional gardening and farming skills and to popularise agrarian culture and local crops. Practical classes, during which seniors will share their knowledge and experience in the cultivation of plants, vegetables, herbs, give tips on how to use the right tools, will also be an opportunity to establish intergenerational relationships, build bonds, develop passion and discover predispositions.
"In search of new solutions and ways of living" - a research and educational cycle for high school students and first-year students. The task of small teams of young people (4-5 people) and an educator-mentor will be to prepare scenarios of classes using modern technologies and teaching methods in the area of ecological and safe ways of obtaining energy, water and food production.
“Growing city” - a course for design / architecture / urbanism / spatial planning master students concentrated on potential practical outcomes of including food productions systems within the built environment (buidings, neighbourhoods, public spaces).
Achieving sustainable development depends on many factors, yet, the most important is the awareness, action and cooperation of individuals, communities and environments. Recognition of diversity, a sense of belonging to nature, awareness of agency and impact on the industrial ecosystem requires knowledge, willingness to engage and exemplary solutions. The education programme, training and popularisation techniques prepared at AquaFarma are based on an interdisciplinary approach. The chosen methodology is based on learning by experience, i.e. experiment, practical workshops, observations, experiences, analysis and drawing conclusions as well as creative presentation of solutions. The programme contains thematic materials of various areas, with particular emphasis on natural and technical sciences, and assumes the development of soft skills (e.g. cooperation, building social relations, independence). Classes, workshops, meetings and panels take place in the halls, around the AquaFarma installations and outdoors. The programme is set to inspire the use of new technologies for life, for nature, not only for humans. Hence, “AquaFarma” is aimed at informal education addressed to youth, adults, and seniors visiting this meeting place co - created and co-designed with the society. By presenting a solution that implements a number of sustainable development goals (e.g. SDGs 2, 4, 11 and 12) and strives to produce food in accordance with the principles of the circular economy, the use of renewable energy sources and an alternative source of water with inclusion of nature based solutions into the system, we develop these specific competences for sustainability. Predominantly, we would like and plan to develop such competence as adaptability and futures literacy (in the area of Envisioning sustainable futures), and collective actions (in the area of Acting for sustainability).
